Songs for those who return: the music of the Day of the Dead
- elisamtz
- Oct 27
- 7 min read
In Mexico, the Day of the Dead is more than a celebration: it's an expression of identity. Every year, between November 1 and 2, the line between life and death becomes porous, and homes are filled with aromas, colors, and sounds that evoke memory. But if there's one element that connects past and present with special force, it's music.
Since pre-Hispanic times, sound has been a means of communicating with the spiritual world. The ancient Mexica used drums, shells, and flutes to guide souls in their journey; with the arrival of mestizaje, these sounds were transformed into songs and melodies that blend the sacred with the popular. Today, these traditions survive in songs performed every Day of the Dead: pieces that not only accompany our memory but also reaffirm who we are.
Some songs have become true symbols of this holiday. Their lyrics speak of love, loss, farewell, and reunion; their melodies, of the beauty that exists even in death. Below, we review some of the most representative Day of the Dead songs, those that year after year continue to give voice to the collective memory.
“La Llorona”: Song between pain and identity
There's no Day of the Dead without La Llorona, a traditional song from Oaxaca. Although its origins predate the 20th century, thanks to an anonymous composer, it was in the voices of Chavela Vargas and Lila Downs that it reached its most mystical dimension. The song combines tears and feminine strength: the weeping woman is not just a victim, but a symbol of the profound pain that also sings. Each interpretation gives it a new nuance—from an indigenous lament to a hymn of resistance and memory.
This song was popularized in the 1940s, when poet and former senator Andrés Henestrosa heard it in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Oaxaca and wrote an arrangement of it, immortalizing the legend through music. It was in 1958 that Chavela Vargas recorded the song for the first time, and ever since, it has become part of Mexican popular culture.
“Amor eterno”: A hymn to memory
Composed by Juan Gabriel in 1970 and released in 1984 with Rocío Dúrcal, Amor eterno transcended its personal history to become a national prayer. It doesn't matter if it is played in a cemetery, on the radio, or at an altar: the emotion is the same. Rocío Dúrcal's interpretation turned this song into the unofficial anthem of the Day of the Dead. There are two versions of the story behind this song, the most popular one tells that it was composed in honor of the composer's mother who died in 1974 and the other story - more controversial - is that it was written for Juan Gabriel's personal secretary and his partner who died of cancer, both sharing the name Luis, and therefore the word "tocayo" can be formed with the first letter of each verse.
Although Rocío Dúrcal was the greatest exponent of the song, Juan Gabriel's version at the presentation of the famous concert at the Palacio de Bellas Artes in 1990 is the version that remains in the collective memory of Mexicans where he inserted the word "mamá": "I am seeing a dark solitude, the same solitude of your grave, mama, and it is you, it is you who are the love of which I have the saddest memory of Acapulco." (minute 2:54)
“Las golondrinas”: Farewell and hope
Traditionally used to say goodbye, Las golondrinas—a 19th-century song attributed to Narciso Serradell Sevilla—evokes the nostalgia of those who have departed. Its melody is often played at the end of funerals, graduations, or trips. It was published in 1862 and first recorded in 1899 by Italian Arthur Adadmini, the same tenor who first recorded Peru's national anthem in a New York studio two years earlier, in 1897. Unfortunately, no copy of the recording survives; the next surviving recording was made by the Spanish-American baritone Emilio de Gogorza in 1926.
The lyrics of the song have been the subject of controversy since there are several versions, in the specific case of Gogorza's version, the lyrics are:
(Spanish lyrics)
Aben Ahmet al partir de Granada,
su corazón desgarrado sintió.
AAllá en la vega al perderla de vista,
con débil voz su lamento expreso.
Mansión de amores, celestial paraíso,
nací en tu seno y mil dichas gocé.
Voy a partir a lejanas refiones
!Ay! nunca más, nunca más estaré.
(Translation to English)
Aben Ahmet, upon leaving Granada,
felt his heart wrenched.
Out in the plain, upon losing sight of her,
he expressed his lament with a weak voice.
Mansion of love, heavenly paradise,
I was born in your womb and enjoyed a thousand joys.
I am going to depart to distant lands.
Oh! Never again, never again will I be.
However, the artist who first recorded it in Mexico was singer Tito Guízar, who starred in the 1936 film Allá en el Rancho Grande, which is considered the film that marked the beginning of Mexico's Golden Age of Cinema. In this version, the lyrics have been edited:
(Spanish lyrics)
¿A dónde irá veloz y fatigada
la golondrina que de aquí se va?
O por si a caso volver angustiada
buscando abrigo y sin poderlo hallar.
Canción de amor, celestial paraíso
¿a dónde fuera la estación pasar?
También yo voy a la región perdida
buscando amor y sin poderlo hallar.
O por si a caso volver angustiada
buscando abrigo y no lo encontrará.
(Translation to English)
Where will the swift and weary swallow go
that flies away from here?
Or perhaps return in anguish
looking for shelter and unable to find it.
Love song, heavenly paradise
Where would the season go?
I too go to the lost region
Looking for love and not being able to find it.
Or in case you come back anxious
looking for shelter and don't find it.
And three years later, in 1969, Pedro Infante would record his own version, which would immortalize the song in popular and mariachi culture in Mexico.
(Spanish lyrics)
¿A dónde irá veloz y fatigada
la golondrina que de aquí se va?
No si en el cielo te mira angustiada
sin paz ni abrigo que la vio partir.
Junto a mi pecho hallará su nido
en donde pueda la estación pasar.
También yo estoy en la región perdida
¡Oh cielo santo! y sin poder volar.
(Translation to English)
Where will the swift and weary
swallow that flies away from here go?
Not if the sky watches you, anguished,
without peace or shelter, who saw it depart.
Beside my breast she will find her nest
where the season may pass.
I too am in the lost region
Oh, holy heavens! and unable to fly.
“Cruz de olvido”
From Juan Zaizar, this ranchera song is a melancholic gem. It speaks of a love that is not forgotten, of the scar that remains. Originally written for the Zaizar Duo, made up of the composer himself and his brother David, Vicente Fernández's version is actually the most popular. The year of composition is uncertain, however, the first recording was made in 1974 by the Zaizar brothers, and three years later, in 1977, by Vicente on his album "La Muerte de un Gallero."
“Recuérdame”: The new tradition
The 2017 film Coco gave the world a contemporary take on the Mexican ritual of remembering the dead. Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez's Recuérdame (Remember Me), though newer, has become a popular part of the Day of the Dead tradition, as its lyrics reflect ideas of memory, love, and family legacy, very much in line with the Mexican tradition of honoring the dead through music, offerings, and stories.
This song won multiple awards, including the Oscar for Best Original Song in 2018, and was nominated several times for Grammys. The popular version is the pop version performed by Mexican singer Carlos Rivera.
Music as a bridge
These songs—old or new—fulfill the same function as pre-Hispanic shells and drums: to call upon the spirits, keep memory alive, and give us comfort. Death, accompanied by music, ceases to be silence (for more information on pre-Hispanic music, see my post https://www.elide-music.com/en/post/cuauht%C3%A9moc-strenght-pre-hispanic-music-as-an-important-element-in-warfare
Because in Mexico we don't mourn the dead: we sing to them so they can find their way back.
References
Discogs. (n.d.). Hnos. Záizar – El romanticismo de ayer y de hoy. Recuperado el 17 de octubre de 2025, de https://www.discogs.com/es/master/1983511-Hnos-Zaizar-El-Romanticismo-De-Ayer-Y-De-Hoy
Discogs. (n.d.). Tito Guízar – El bolero ranchero está de luto. Recuperado el 17 de octubre de 2025, de https://www.discogs.com/release/31163459-Tito-Guizar-El-Bolero-Ranchero-Esta-De-Luto
Discogs. (n.d.). Pedro Infante – Mañanitas por Pedro Infante. Recuperado el 17 de octubre de 2025, de https://www.discogs.com/master/709944-Pedro-Infante-Ma%C3%B1anitas-Por-Pedro-Infante
Discogs. (n.d.). Vicente Fernández – La muerte de un gallero. Recuperado el 17 de octubre de 2025, de https://www.discogs.com/es/master/701172-Vicente-Fernandez-La-Muerte-De-Un-Gallero
Frontera Collection, UCLA. (n.d.). Las golondrinas. Recuperado el 17 de octubre de 2025, de https://frontera.library.ucla.edu/recordings/las-golondrinas-7
Proyecto Bicentenario. (n.d.). Himno Nacional del Perú. Recuperado el 17 de octubre de 2025, de https://bicentenario.gob.pe/fiestas-patrias-himno-nacional/
Milenio. (s.f.). El secreto de “Amor eterno” de Juan Gabriel: la canción que escribió para su madre. Recuperado el 17 de octubre de 2025, de https://www.milenio.com/espectaculos/musica/secreto-juan-gabriel-amor-eterno-madre
Sociedad de Autores y Compositores de México (SACM). (n.d.). Juan Gabriel – Biografía. Recuperado el 17 de octubre de 2025, de https://www.sacm.org.mx/Informa/Biografia/13621
Quién. (2016, agosto 29). Juan Gabriel y su madre, Victoria Valadez. Recuperado el 17 de octubre de 2025, de https://www.quien.com/espectaculos/2016/08/29/juan-gabriel-mama-victoria-valadez
Sociedad de Autores y Compositores de México. (n.d.). Juan Záizar. Recuperado el 18 de octubre de 2025, de https://www.sacm.org.mx/Informa/Biografia/02223
RTVE. (2022, noviembre 25). La canción “La Llorona” y sus más de 500 versiones, desde Chavela Vargas hasta Natalia Lafourcade. Recuperado el 17 de octubre de 2025, de https://www.rtve.es/television/20221125/cancion-llorona-500-versiones-chavela-vargas/2409801.shtml
Záizar, J. (n.d.). Cruz de olvido [Grabación]. Frontera Collection, UCLA. Recuperado el 17 de octubre de 2025, de https://frontera.library.ucla.edu/es/recordings/cruz-de-olvido-27
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